1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera control system and, more particularly, to a camera control system which can select an arbitrary one of a plurality of cameras and can remotely control the selected camera.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, a so-called multi-location TV conference is attained by a closed system in which a video camera that operates according to predetermined specifications is set in a specific conference room and is controlled from another conference room at a remote place. However, such a system is expensive and has not become very popular.
In recent years, along with the advance of information networks, a system that allows communications by retrieving image information from a remote place into its own terminal such as a personal computer has become popular. In such system connection via a network, intercommunications among multiple points can be easily realized, and the above-mentioned TV conference becomes more realistic.
The above-mentioned system attains connections of various video cameras to the network by adopting a standardized format. However, few systems anticipate connections of video cameras that can attain panning, tilting, and the like. Furthermore, no system that can control such video cameras via a network is available.